Second fraud suspect in Big 3 and 5 Diamond Motors probe goes free

Sabhi (Alex) Bakir is all smiles after the Crown withdrew all criminal charges against him. Bakir was the second fraud suspect charged after a months-long joint forces fraud probe into two Windsor car dealerships. Bakir spoke with the media outside the Ontario Court of Justice on November 28, 2012 in Windsor, Ont. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

The Crown has withdrawn all criminal charges against a second fraud suspect after a months-long joint forces probe into two Windsor car dealerships.

The trial against Sabhi (Alex) Bakir, 33, was scheduled to begin today after a lengthy probe into the dealings of Big 3 Pre-Owned Auto Sales and 5 Diamond Motors. But assistant Crown attorney Elizabeth Brown started the proceedings by withdrawing the charges.

“I feel very happy,” Bakir said after the charges were withdrawn. “I feel very proud of the court system, my lawyer, the prosecutor.”

“It has been very hard,” said the married father of two who now buys and sells cars wholesale. “Everybody is looking at me in this community very differently, like I committed a fraud, but I never did.”

Brown did not elaborate on why she dropped the charges, except to say it was “in light of recent disclosure” that was not known when police laid the charges.

“There is no longer a reasonable prospect of conviction,” she said.

After Brown’s request, Ontario court Justice Guy DeMarco said all charges against Bakir were withdrawn and he was free to go. Bakir’s lawyer John Liddle also wouldn’t elaborate on the Crown’s new information, but said he hoped Bakir could get on with his life.

“I’m very happy for my client,” said Liddle. “I’m sure he’d like to get his reputation back. I don’t know if that’s possible.”

Liddle noted that Big 3 Auto made money from auto sales, but that interest paid went to the lenders, as is common in the industry.

“I’m quite proud of my client in that he showed a great deal of resolve all the way through this,” said Liddle. “He never once wavered in his instructions to me that he’s not guilty of anything.”

The investigation — a team effort involving Windsor police, OPP and RCMP — initially led to investigators laying 146 charges against three men.

Prosecutors had already dropped some of the 65 charges against Bakir. Today, Brown dropped the remaining 36 charges, involving seven complainants. The Crown had previously also dropped all 11 charges against another accused, Souheil (Daniel) Yazbek, 47.

The alleged fraud mastermind and dealership owner Jamal Hazime, 42, faced 70 criminal charges. But he remains in Lebanon. A judge allowed Hazime to travel there in October after he claimed his mother was sick. The judge let him go on a promise he would return, an obligation he has yet to fulfil.

Hazime’s lawyer Robert Dipietro said his client told him as recently as Wednesday morning that he expects to return to Canada within a week or two to face his charges, which have been whittled down to fewer than 10.

“Even before he knew charges were being withdrawn he had every intention of coming back and dealing with this matter,” Dipietro said. “It’s clear from what transpired this morning that the Crown’s case is pretty weak.”

Another judge allowed Bakir to travel to Tunisia to visit his ailing father, though he came back on the date promised.

The trio was accused of defrauding customers by sticking them with higher car prices, finance rates and loan terms than agreed to and forging their signatures on contracts. Police said the dealers also sold customers non-existent warranties.

Police have received calls from several hundred potential victims but laid charges in relation to 16 people.

At least two people who felt victimized by Big 3 Auto were upset by the withdrawn charges.

“I’m sick to my stomach,” said Jennifer St. Jean, whose father Patrick McLaughlin was a complainant in the case. “The victims have been ignored. We have no voice.

St. Jean said her father’s name was on the contracts, because she was going through a divorce, but that she bought three four-year-old vehicles through Big 3 Auto. She said in 2008 she agreed to pay a little more than $50,000 but has already paid more than $76,000, with more still owing. She said she was not given a contract when she left the dealership, but when it came in it had an 18 per cent interest rate instead of the eight per cent she agreed to, and was for 72 months instead of 48.

“In all fairness, after 2 1/2 years and four Crowns, I think they should have allowed a judge to hear what we had to say,” St. Jean said. “Who made the decision to drop everything?”

“The Big 3 investigation was obviously a complex, lengthy, multi-jurisdictional investigation involving several police agencies,” said Windsor police Sgt. Matthew D’Asti. “At this time, all we can say about it is there were some things addressed in court, new information apparently was brought to light. The assistant Crown attorney in court addressed those issues and the charges were withdrawn. Because there are other matters before the court that are directly related to this investigation, we simply can’t reply or respond to anything at this time.”

Sabhi (Alex) Bakir, left, and his lawyer John Liddle talk with reporters after the Crown withdrew all criminal charges against him. Bakir was the second fraud suspect charged after a months-long joint forces fraud probe into two Windsor car dealerships. Bakir spoke with the media outside the Ontario Court of Justice on November 28, 2012 in Windsor, Ont. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

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